
Healthy Mind, Healthy You is a weekly column written by Mental Wellness Coach Cynthia M. Each week, she will share insight on how you can be live a healthier life. You can read previous articles from this column here.
Facing our negative emotions is always tough. Just like what I shared in the articles in September, we have to gear up for the fight for our healing and wholeness. This is always worth it in the end when your life starts to look and feel better. This week we focus on the second pillar in dealing with disappointment.
Pillar 2: Strength of Character
Strength of character can be defined simply as the amount of strength one has towards negative actions or deeds. Taking the moral high road with the strength to stand up for your beliefs and do what is right, regardless of how it may make you look or what money it may cost you. It is the possession of high moral fibre and the courage of your convictions held strongly. People with strong characters can really overcome most of the negative things that happen to them because they believe they can overcome.
So how does strength of character help? I will share three ways a strong character can help us when dealing with disappointments.
Step 1: Aligning with your beliefs
You have already looked at how your emotions are affecting you, so now it’s about remembering what your beliefs are. Our beliefs serve as a valuable guide in how we navigate good and bad times in our lives. Life can get in the way, but always find your way back to what you believe in because it can help you navigate any season in your life.
Step 2: Affirming yourself
Knowing yourself is great, but it’s the consistency of those thoughts and behaviours that gives us the strength we need. For us to live out our beliefs confidently, we need to affirm ourselves. An interesting tool for this is writing down all the things you are great at and want to grow in your character and each day, you read them out loud to yourself. As you do this daily, you create a positive self-image by changing how you think of yourself. By affirming yourself and increasing your confidence, you can start to feel more capable of dealing with the disappointments you have had.

Step 3: Emotional strength to move on
By having strong conviction in what you believe in and standing up for it, you can find the strength it will take to move on after a disappointment. Sometimes disappointments can have a disorienting effect on our lives. When we have strength of character, we are better able to find ourselves again; but not just that, we can find our way out of the disorientation of the disappointment. I always advise people not to park at the point of their pain, and that’s what having a strong character can help you with. Instead of parking, you are able to navigate out of that season.
Keep strengthening your character and walking in that strength so you can stand firm in the face of disappointing experiences.
Next week, I tackle how to restrategise and be resourceful after a disappointment.
Until next time, remember: when you change your thinking, you can change your life.
Cynthia M is a mental wellness coach trained in psychology. She works with different individuals and groups to help them establish a more balanced state of emotional wellbeing so they can experience a better quality of life.
Connect with her on:
Instagram: @iam_cynthia_m
Facebook: @iamcynthia.m
Website: iamcynthiam.wordpress.com

Cynthia M is a Mental Wellness Coach trained in Psychology. She works with different
individuals and groups to help them establish a more balanced state of emotional wellbeing so
they can experience a better quality of life.